Category Archives: Global Politics

The changing climate of global politics and the many conflicts taking place around the world have led to the U.S. based defense equipment supplier, Lockheed Martin reporting a major jump in profits across the second quarter of 2017, according to the BBC. One of the major reasons for the growing profits of Lockheed Martin has been the development of the F-35 fighter jet that is currently being completed with the aid of many global partners, including the U.K.

It is thought the increase in profits for Lockheed Martin will signal a global shift towards a greater level of defense funding for many nations who have recently seen their military budgets cut. The rising profits for Lockheed Martin have come as something of a shock to many experts who believed the military based equipment manufacturer had been damaged by the criticism of the company by President Donald Trump during the U.S. Presidential election campaign; Trump had singled out the F-35 fighter jet program as a sign of the wasteful nature of the U.S. Military and Administration of President Barrack Obama.

As one of the partners in the program to build the F-35, the U.K. has looked to place a new order for the Royal Air Force that has added to the profits of Lockheed Martin. The U.K. Military has now ordered an initial 24 F-35 aircraft, which will be known as the Lightning II when they go into service in 2018. The aircraft is seen as a replacement for the iconic Harrier Jump Jet because of the ability of the F-35 to takeoff from a short runway and land vertically.